Recently the debate about whether boys and girls must be together or separated in class. On the one hand those who affirm that segregation improves learning. On the other hand, those who consider that separating by sex promotes inequality and discrimination.
Men and women form a society in which we live and work together, so it seems more than obvious to think that segregating in schools since childhood fosters the inequality of children's rights and freedoms.
Boys with boys and girls with girls?
A few years ago, the study "The pseudoscience of schooling by sex" carried out by the University of Arizona was published in the prestigious American journal Science.
This study was intended to give more information about the disadvantages of sex segregation in classrooms, given the growing popularity of this type of schools in the United States.
The study ensured that the separation of boys and girls in classrooms feed stereotypes, strengthens sexism and increases existing social prejudices.
In any plot of life, men and women, boys and girls, we live and work together, regardless of sex. What is the point, then, of segregating in childhood from schools?Segregated schooling could be understood in the past, where the cultural patterns of society clearly differentiated both sexes. But as society has progressed in equal rights and opportunities for men and women, keeping this type of education segregated would be meaningless.
Proponents of segregation in classrooms say that separation helps children foster closeness to their same-sex partners as well as feeling of belonging to a group.
This argument, however, is inadmissible for those who defend mixed education and the equality of children in rights and opportunities, claiming, in addition, that the feeling of belonging to a group modifies behaviors and promote sexism.
For Marina Subirats, professor emeritus of the Autonomous University of Barcelona, sex segregation is a sexist vision of the world. This is stated in his article. “Coeducation or segregated school? An old and persistent debate ”:
"The underlying discussion that should be maintained is whether we want a society in which men and women have different characteristics, habits and emotions that lead them to different social roles, or if we consider that we should not mark destinations and roles social from sex ”- says Marina
Boys and girls learn differently
A few days ago, a ruling from the Supreme Court condemned the Junta de Andalucía for not wanting to help keep the concert of nine schools that segregate their students by sex with public funds.
And in Spain, sex segregation is not a thing of the past, and although for some years some autonomous communities have been withdrawing subsidies to concerted schools, there are still approximately 150 private and concerted schools that work with this teaching model.
The directors of these centers affirm that boys and girls are different in learning it refers, so that the separation in the classrooms facilitates the adapted teaching.
According to the people who defend this model, boys are better at mathematical reasoning and concentration activities, while girls are better in the field of language and emotionally.
They also indicate that the sex separation increases student concentration and freedom so that, when the time comes, boys and girls can choose their professional career without being conditioned by traditional roles.
Francisco J. Rubia, Professor of Medicine at the Complutense University of Madrid and author of "The sex of the brain", defends differentiated education claiming that scientifically it is the best for both sexesDo you really get better academic results by segregating?
Supporting segregation schools claim that the academic results obtained by separating students are superior to those of mixed schools, due to the individualized treatment according to each sex that the teacher can give.
According to these schools, boys are more energetic and girls are more empathetic so both sexes will work better if they are treated by teachers of the same sex attending to these characteristicsHowever, those who support mixed education claim that these data are conditioned, since in most cases, academic results come from elite centers. And this is where the difference would lie and not in the supposed benefits of sex separation.
For its part, the journal Science cites in its study a report made by the United States Department of Education where it can be seen that the school performance and the academic results of mixed and single-sex schools they are very similar, spoiling the theory that the latter centers get better results.
The researchers say that these academic conclusions have been repeated in eSimilar studios carried out in other countries such as the United Kingdom, Canada, Australia and New Zealand, where boys and girls are also separated in schools.
End segregation in classrooms
In the world there are still many single-sex schools, but they are located in countries where girls could not access an education if they do not do so in their own classrooms.
In democratic countries, public budgets should not contribute to this type of segregation. For this reason, some autonomous communities began their particular crusade against this type of school years ago, withdrawing subsidies to concerted schools that divided by sex.
“In the society of the 21st century men and women coexist intensely, they need to understand each other and start from a common basis so as not to be unknown to each other and vice versa”- says Marina Subirats. Y This can hardly be achieved if we begin segregation from childhood.
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In Babies and More: They get better grades, but they think they are better, how do we want to educate our children? Differences between boys and girls: How do times change ?, Can a four-year-old boy be sexist? Activities for early childhood education on gender equality,
